The process of moving, particularly across great distances, can be a bigger contributor to environmental degradation than you might want it to be, but take heart that you can take steps to minimize the impact.
In this guide to sustainable moving we present a multi-faceted approach that not only aligns with broader goals of sustainability but can also save money and be more efficient.
Pre-Move Checklist
1. Declutter Early
The more items you own, the more you have to move. This means more trips or hiring a bigger vehicle, which means more CO2 emissions. It also means more packaging and more potential waste.
Moving companies will likely charge you either per trip or for the number and weight of boxes. By taking only what you really need, you can help save the environment and save money.
Go through each room, one at a time. Getting rid of things we don’t really need can be very energizing. Find new homes for any clothes that don’t fit anymore, toys that aren’t used and books you know you will never read. Think about what you will need in your own new home.
If you’re planning on upgrading anything like computers or appliances after the move, it might be a good idea to find them new homes beforehand so that you don’t have to transport them.
You can give presents to family or friends, give to charity, sell things online or hold a yard sale and generate some money.
If anything is too old to be donated or sold, you might still find a taker for your items if you post them for free on a few online marketplaces. People can do amazing things with waste.
As a last resort, if nobody wants the items, take them to a recycling facility. Recycling household waste reduces the amount of stuff that ends up in landfills and helps develop sustainable practices so it is definitely something you should consider when moving.
2. Reduce Food Waste
Food items generally don’t travel well, especially over long distances. Think about the food you have in your cupboards, fridge and freezer, and start strategically trying to eat it all before you move homes.
This might mean you suddenly eat a lot of frozen vegetables, and that the mysterious sauce you had at the back of your freezer will finally get used.
If you really can’t eat another bowl of rice or tin of soup, there are likely to be local food banks that will gratefully receive your unopened, unperishable donations.
Giving to food banks is not only a great act of charity, but it will also make your trip lighter and less stressful.
3. Keep Furniture Out of Landfill
Hundreds of thousands of tons of furniture are thrown into landfills every year. If you have furniture that you don’t want to bring with you when you move, start planning what you want to do with it early.
If you like the furniture but aren’t sure whether it will fit in your new home, you could always put it in a storage unit for a few days until you have a better idea of whether there will be room.
If you know that there won’t be space for it in your new home, but the furniture is still in good condition, you could sell it or give it to a local charity.
You could also call your municipality and ask how to recycle it. Recycling depots may collect furniture items for a small fee, rather than risk people dumping them on the streets or in natural areas.
Try to ensure that all your furniture items will be collected simultaneously to reduce carbon emissions.
The Move Checklist
4. Hire an Eco-friendly Moving Company
Nowadays, being eco-friendly is not only becoming the norm—it’s becoming a competitive advantage for businesses. You’re more and more likely to find moving companies that understand the importance of reusing moving supplies and reducing their carbon footprint as much as possible.
With electric vehicles becoming mainstream, eco friendly moving companies are making the switch, so it’s now more likely than ever to find movers who use EVs or, at least, hybrid vehicles or other fuel-efficient vans and trucks.
5. Use a Moving Box Rental Service
Moving box rental services are becoming more popular. They leave you with a box at your front door, pick it up and send it along with many other boxes, fully utilizing the amount of energy being expended by the truck. This saves money not only for the consumer but also allows for a more economical way of transferring goods to a location.
Consider: you may book an entire truck but not fill it up all the way, and then all of that unused space becomes empty space travelling between countries for no reason. Instead of wasting this space, moving box rental services maximize fuel savings.
6. Move With Another Party
Check your local social media groups to find out if anyone else is moving to and from the same general areas. If you can split the costs on a moving truck, you can fit all of your belongings onto one vehicle if possible and use half the fuel you otherwise would have.
7. Use Alternatives to Packing Boxes
Some removals firms will offer to lend you strong, large plastic containers. This will mean you don’t have to use lots of cardboard boxes. You may also be able to rent plastic containers.
Another alternative is to use furniture and household items as packing boxes. You could use dresser drawers, laundry baskets, chests or suitcases to pack up your items. This creative approach will save space in the moving van.
If you do have to use cardboard boxes, they can be stored flat and then taped up and used again in the future.
If you really cannot find an alternative to cardboard boxes try sourcing used boxes from friends or from local shops. After your move, if you cannot store them, take them to your local recycling centre.
8. Reuse Old Items for Packaging Materials
If you have old items like towels, shirts, or even linens, consider using them as packaging materials. One good alternative for packaging is using old newspapers or magazines since they can be used to pack and afterwards they can even be recycled. As you can read about in 5 Great Ways to Insulate a Green Home, your recycled old newspapers may later be turned into cellulose and used as sustainable home insulation.
Some other sustainable alternatives to plastic bubble wrap and plastic wrap include compostable cellophane and cardboard packing peanuts.
True cellophane is made from plant cellulose, so it’s a biodegradable alternative to plastic wrap. Cardboard packing peanuts can be used instead of styrofoam, because they can be recycled.
9. Utilize Storage Bins
Another option would be to not use boxes at all and to go with storage bins. You can reuse them in your new home and they’ll allow you to stay organized while not throwing away a ton of garbage at the end of the move.
10. Repurpose or Donate Items You Don’t Want to Take
While you’re packing your stuff you’ll likely find there are things that made it past the initial decluttering stage, but when it comes to whether you’d pay extra to have it shipped you decide it’s not so important to you after all.
Instead of throwing away your old items, donate as much as you can. You may be surprised at what others find a treasure, and donating to local organizations that take second-hand items would make you feel a lot better than throwing away hundreds of dollars worth of stuff that would just spend the rest of its life in a landfill.
Point A to Point B
You should also plan out the fastest route possible when driving to your new home, and make as few trips as possible when you’re transporting your belongings.
Road traffic accounts for a significant percentage of C02 emissions each year, so avoiding it whenever possible will mean less wasted fuel and less harmful emissions.
Post-move Checklist
11. Recycle All Moving Materials
Once you’re done moving, you’re likely going to be left with a ton of moving material, even if you take waste-reducing measures. Ensure any material you use doesn’t go in the bin, but instead goes straight into someone else’s hands to help prevent adding waste to the landfills.
You can also choose to keep your packaging material for your next move or for someone else’s. If you list it online, someone’s likely to take it, and if not, you’ll be ready to step up once someone you know makes a move of their own.
12. Dispose of Any Leftover Chemicals Safely
You may also have leftover chemicals from your older home that you don’t want to bring with you, especially from your final clean-up. It’s important that you not simply throw these away, as they’ll get stuck in a landfill and end up leaching into soil and waterways. You can search for a hazardous waste collection and disposal company to dispose these liquids or contact your local authorities to find out where you can drop them off yourself.
By adopting even just a few of these practices, we can collectively move towards a more sustainable future—literally and figuratively. Therefore, when you plan your next move, consider integrating these eco-friendly options into your strategy. They’ll help you reduce your carbon footprint and could set a precedent for others to follow, creating a ripple effect of sustainable choices.
13. Clean Responsibly
There’s a lot of cleaning involved in moving house, and it is unavoidable. Opting for eco-friendly cleaning products will stop harmful chemicals from entering the water system.
You can even make your own cleaning products. A multi-purpose cleaning product can be made using white vinegar, baking powder, lemon and hot water. (Read more about green cleaning in Simple Eco-Friendly Cleaning Tricks).
14. Pass It On
Once you’ve got your own sustainable move done, you can share what you’ve learned with colleagues, friends, and family. Sharing tips can make other people more likely to choose greener options for moving, especially when you can vouch for them being easy and convenient.
The environmental impact of moving house isn’t often discussed. Among signing contracts and packing suitcases, it can be easy to forget. But vehicle emissions, waste production and even cleaning products can have a significant impact.
By following some of the above steps, you can help your house move to be green and clean. Start your new life with a clear conscience knowing you’re doing your part to protect the environment.
Feature image: Michal B; Image 1: Blue Bird; Image 2: Annie Spratt
